


Cosmic Flowers

by cassidynoga



Series: flower talk [1]
Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop & Tattoo Parlor, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Tattoo Artist!Dan, florist!Phil
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-05
Updated: 2017-11-17
Packaged: 2019-01-30 01:33:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12643425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cassidynoga/pseuds/cassidynoga
Summary: Dans owns a tattoo shop and moves his business into the building next to Phil's flower shop. Phil speaks flower. Louise speaks flower. Dan does not.Excerpt: Dan felt his face get hot. “It was nice of him. I guess that’s what happens when you work next to a flower shop.” He shrugged. “And yes, he was cute, but generally my type,” he said, making air quotes around the word type, “has more tattoos and less flowers.”





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi friends! I'm doing this as my NaNoWriMo story for 2017 (I was supposed to finish the murder mystery I started last year but that just wasn't working so here we are), so you can expect fairly regular updates. Also, the plan is to do this entirely from Dan's POV and then post the same story from Phil's view... but would you rather get updates on both perspectives as we go? Let me know. (:

“Aren’t tattoo artists supposed to be manly and strong and be able to open their own store without needing to take a breather?”

Dan Howell looked up and grinned. “They probably are, but I can’t have all the good qualities. Hi, Louise. Please tell me that extra coffee is for me.” Louise laughed and handed over the drink before moving a chair from the front counter closer to Dan. “Somehow I’m not sure if tattoo artists have super girly best friends, so maybe it’s for the better.”

Louise gasped. “Alright, you win. You can just be a non-traditional tattoo artist.”

Dan rolled his eyes. “Thank you for your permission,” he said, hiding a smile behind his cup of coffee. Louise had been his best friend for years. She had come into the tattoo parlor he was working at when he first started, wanting a small heart on her shoulder. It was her first (and only) tattoo, and she had been really nervous beforehand. The owner of the shop had sent her to Dan, knowing that he was fully capable but also kind enough to be gentle with her. It turned out that they had a lot in common and she had hung out for a while until his shift ended. The owner had given Dan a weird look when they left – which he later learned was due to his boss thinking that something was going on between him and Louise, but at the time was totally oblivious to – but they went to a pub and grabbed dinner and a couple drinks and made plans to go find a specific board game in the next week.

After a few weeks of them being friends, Dan’s boss had pulled him aside and asked bluntly if he was dating her. Dan kind of stared back and shook his head, suddenly unsure of how to proceed. He wasn’t dating Louise. He had no desire to date Louise… but he also didn’t want to get fired and he didn’t really know how his boss, who was the stereotypical tattoo artist, would react.

It didn’t matter. The man nodded and accepted the head shake as an answer and dropped the subject. Dan spent the rest of the day wondering if _Louise_ thought he was interested in her. He worried about it so much that when he met up with her the next day for coffee, she said hello and he immediately blurted, “I’m bi, but I don’t want to date you.”

To her credit, Louise didn’t even blink. “I know. That’s great, love,” she had said calmly. “Do you want to split a muffin or do you want one of those sugary pie things?” Dan had to do a double take and twenty minutes of questioning later, Louise sent him to the counter to get both the muffin and the pie. Now, they liked to joke that Dan had a worse reaction to coming out to Louise than Louise did.

The years passed. Dan saw Louise through boyfriends and break ups, and she stuck with him as he switched jobs twice before opening his own tattoo shop. This was the first time he had moved his shop, and he really hoped it would be the last. Louise might have been joking when she commented about him needing a break, but there was some truth to it. He was exhausted, and he didn’t even do all the heavy lifting. Dan had no interest in exercise, so he figured he’d never really look like his peers. Tall, thin, and caught somewhere between emo and punk, he wasn’t really scary but he knew that some people found him intimidating. He often found that amusing, because the majority of his tattoos were hidden from view 95% of the time – especially when he was at work. He had a couple piercings that he knew fit the stereotype, but that’s not why he got them.

Before he could fall down that mental spiral, the bell over the door jingled. Dan looked up, mouth open to tell whomever it was that he wasn’t open yet. Instead, he sat there gaping at what was probably the most beautiful man he’d ever seen in his life. He had pale skin and jet black hair, which was somewhere between a fringe and a quiff, like it had started out as one and been messed with throughout the day. He was tall and colorful – between a bright green shirt and the flowers he was holding – and Dan had no idea why he was there but didn’t mind a bit.

Louise, bless her, realized that Dan was staring and spoke up. “Hello there! I hope you’re not here for a tattoo,” she said brightly, grinning at the man, who blushed.

“Oh, no. Not that there’s anything wrong with them! Obviously. They’re great. I just, um, well, I don’t… I’m not here for one.” He coughed once and then cleared his throat. “I own the shop next door. It’s, um, it’s a flower shop, so… I thought I’d come say hello and bring you a shop-warming present.” He held the flowers out to Louise, which sent Dan’s heart into a panic for reasons he couldn’t and didn’t want to identify, but Louise was already shaking her head.  

“Oh, I’m just a visitor. My name’s Louise. This is Dan’s shop,” she said pointedly, and Dan finally snapped out of it and stood up.

“Hi, I’m Dan. Obviously,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Those look great, thanks. This place needs a little color.”

“Thanks! Um, and you’re welcome. I’m Phil.”

Dan grinned. “So how long have you had your shop?” Internally, he cringed, hating himself for not having a better conversation starter. Regardless, it worked.

“Oh, gosh. I’ve been there for about… five years? I don’t ever plan on moving again. They don’t like moving.” Phil blushed again, deeper this time. “The plants, I mean. They… they don’t travel well. Soil gets everywhere and the leaves and petals are delicate…” Behind him, Dan could hear Louise cough – covering a laugh – but he knew her well enough to know that she’d cover it properly and take a sip of water or something. As far as he went, Dan felt a sudden rush of affection towards Phil. He was adorable. After a second, Dan realized that he needed to say something and not just stand there smiling like an idiot.

“Well, it’s good to know that it’s nice enough of a location, then. And I won’t need to worry about competition moving in if you left. I don’t plan on moving, either, for what it’s worth. My equipment moves fine but I’d rather not do that again.” Dan shut his mouth before he rambled on too much and ran his tongue along the piercing in his lip. It had become a nervous habit of his, but it was better than biting his nails or messing with his hair, so for the time being, it would stay. He then realized that Phil was still holding the flowers and reached his hand out. “I’ll put those on the counter. I’m not actually opening today but I like them and they’ll look good for tomorrow.” He paused, pulling his hand back a bit. “Right? I don’t actually know a lot about flowers,” he admitted.  

Phil nodded. “They’ll last for several days, at least. Just make sure that there’s still water in the vase and you’ll be fine. That’s really the only care that cut flowers need.” He shrugged. “They’re already slated for death, so it’s not like you can kill them.”

Dan stared for a second before laughing. “When you put it that way…” He shrugged and grinned at Phil, who had pink cheeks again. Dan decided that he just wanted to spend his time making Phil blush, and then he scolded himself for starting to fall for a boy he had known the existence of for about five minutes. “I’m much more comfortable with flowers with a fate. I’m not sure I can handle the responsibility of keeping something besides myself alive.” Louise snorted and Dan jumped. He’d kind of forgotten that she was there. He turned slightly to look at her, and she laughed.

“Sorry, love. It’s just, well, I’m not totally convinced you can keep yourself alive on your own.”

Dan rolled his eyes and huffed. “I can,” he insisted, trying to keep the whine out of his voice. Louise hummed an acknowledgement and Dan turned back to Phil and reached for the flowers again. Phil grinned and handed them over, watching silently as Dan moved to the counter and set them there. They really did look good there. Dan especially liked the black ribbon. He guessed that it wasn’t a normal choice for something like this, but he appreciated it. He wasn’t quite sure how Phil had known that it would work for him, but Dan brushed it off. He _had_ just moved in, so it was very possible that Phil had seen his stuff. Or maybe he just assumed that black worked because it was a tattoo shop. Either way, he was right.

“I should probably get back,” Phil said then, and Dan closed his eyes for a second. Of course he had to leave. He couldn’t just hang out at Dan’s shop all day. “I have a couple more arrangements to make for pick ups…” he trailed off and Dan turned around.

“Alright,” Dan said, not really knowing how to say goodbye and convey the intention to see him again without blatantly making plans. “Thanks for the flowers. It was nice to meet you.”

Phil nodded. “That’s alright. It was nice to meet you, too. Both of you,” he said, including Louise. Dan looked over and saw her smile at Phil.

“You, too, dear,” she said warmly. “We’ll see you around, I’m sure. Maybe at the grand opening?”

Dan took that moment to thank every deity and also fate, for good measure, for Louise. “Yeah, you should definitely come by for the grand opening!” Dan toned his excitement down a little bit before continuing. “It’s the day after tomorrow. I know that’s kind of soon, but since I already have a client base, I figured it would be okay to do one really early instead of waiting a month or so like some people do.” He shrugged and touched his tongue to his lip piercing. He was developing a very bad habit of saying way too many words around Phil.

“I’ll be there. Or, here. I’ll be here. Thanks. Um, I’ll see you then.” Phil said, taking a couple steps back and gave a little half wave.

“See you then!” Dan said, waving back, because it’s not like he could embarrass himself any more and also because there was something about Phil that made him feel like it was okay. The other man grinned and turned towards the door. Dan watched him leave, and only when the door was safely closed did he chance a glance at Louise. As he expected, she was looking at him with a smirk on her face. “What?!”

“Nothing, nothing,” she said, the smirk on her face only growing. “That was very friendly of him,” she said with a laugh. “He’s sweet. And cute. Just your type.”

Dan felt his face get hot. “It was nice of him. I guess that’s what happens when you work next to a flower shop.” He shrugged. “And yes, he was cute, but generally my _type_ ,” he said, making air quotes around the word type, “has more tattoos and less flowers.” He raised an eyebrow at her, and the rest of his comment went unsaid. That was another thing about having had a friend for as long as he’d been friends with Louise – she knew all the stories. He didn’t have to remind her that the last guy he dated was neither sweet or cute in the end. Maybe that’s why he felt drawn to Phil. Maybe that’s why Louise seemed to be rooting for the guy.

Dan shook the thoughts from his head. “If he comes to the grand opening, I’ll talk to him some more. I don’t really see him coming in for a tattoo or a piercing.”

Louise shrugged. “I come in and I don’t want any more of either.”

Dan sighed. “Yeah, but you’re my best friend.”

“He might be your best friend one day,” she shot back. Dan was shaking his head before she had even finished the sentence.

“He’s not going to replace you, Lou.”

She waved him off. “You can have more than one best friend. Especially if the other one is _him_ , and especially if  -“

“OKAY, no, we’re not going there. Not right now,” Dan interrupted, stopping that conversation from going where he expected it to.

“I’m just saying, Dan, I’m okay with it. You can have other friends.”

Dan sighed again and sat down. “I know. We’ll see how it goes.”

Louise stood up. “I expect all the details that I’m not here to witness,” she said, moving over to the counter to collect her handbag. She paused by the flowers and giggled. “So friendly. Florists are great.” Before Dan could reply, she crossed back to him and leaned over to give him a hug. “I best be off. You should probably head home for the day as well. You have a busy day tomorrow with finishing up the grand opening details and cleaning up around here.” Dan nodded and stood up as well.

“I’ll do a quick walk through and then be off. You’re not coming by tomorrow, are you?”

Louise shook her head. “I’ll be here early on grand opening day, though, in case you need anything.”

“Thanks, Louise. I’ll see you.” Dan waved as Louise left the building. He did a quick walk through of the shop, making sure nothing was left on and that all the lights were off. When he got back to the front desk, he paused at the flowers. As much as he wanted to take them home, he finally decided to leave them at the shop overnight. He’d hate for Phil to come in and not see them, and he didn’t want to carry them back and forth on the tube. He grabbed his backpack and locked the front door on his way out. If all went as planned, he’d finish setting everything up tomorrow and the following day would officially reopen for business.

And maybe Phil would come by as well.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to put this at the beginning of the last chapter, but do me a favor and just ignore the concept that some of the flowers in this story might be seasonal and/or not widely available. Flower is not my first language, so I'm working with what I can find.

Realistically, Dan should have known that sleep would not come easy. Any time he had something even remotely big or important or embarrassing happen in his life, is brain went into overdrive and refused to quit. It didn’t matter if he was so excited that he couldn’t sit still or just slightly happier than normal, it meant late nights and less sleep than he wanted. Still, he was totally exhausted from the day and figured that maybe, just maybe, tonight would be an exception.

It was not. First his mind went to the move in general, and how he’d have to find a new coffee shop on the way to work, because even though he owned the place, he still liked getting there at a reasonable time every day. That meant he needed to rely on someone else making the coffee, because if he tried to make it and take it with him, he’d usually end up spilling it on himself and then have to stop and change and remake coffee... it was just easier to pick up a cup when he was pretty close to the shop. Regular hours at his old shop had been from eleven in the morning until eleven at night, but quite frankly, Dan was considering changing them. He knew that one of his artists was making the move with him, and at least one of the girls who worked at the reception desk, but he didn’t know for sure about any of the others. They had given him vague answers and he hadn’t pushed the issue. He did make a point of telling the girls to not schedule appointments tightly for the next couple weeks, just in case anything went wrong. That included having less artists available to work than he expected.

Dan didn’t mind the start time, even if he technically liked to show up around ten or ten thirty and deal with the business side of things. It was really the nights that he wasn’t super fond of. Any time he expressed that opinion to those who knew him, they found it strange and surprising. Dan understood that; he’d always been a night owl. When he first started working in a tattoo parlor, his mum had commented that it was probably the perfect job for him and his tendency to be awake for hours into the night. He showed up sometime between two and four in the afternoon and stayed until they closed, which was nearly always past midnight. In general, it was alright, but despite being over six-foot-tall and looking somewhat intimidating – even then – Dan was never really comfortable walking home in those early hours of the morning. He knew that he probably wouldn’t win in a fight, and he also knew that he would be a target pretty quickly if anyone on the streets had a reason to believe that he wasn’t, well, straight. With that as his reasoning, he hesitated going to his boss about it. Looking back, his boss probably had suspicions of his own, but Dan did good work and was friendly to nervous clients, so it might have fallen into the _don’t ask, don’t tell_ motto.

Either way, Dan was relieved when he started getting earlier shifts, and then even more relieved when he opened his own shop and closed down around eleven. It still meant a late night, but there was something different about the time before midnight and the time after midnight. His new shop was even closer to his flat than the old shop had been, which was nice, but Dan was still pretty sure that he was going to keep his policy of scheduling all of his appointments before six if he could help it. If the others wanted to stay later, he’d keep the shop hours the same. Otherwise, he figured he’d slowly change it and see what worked best.

Once that was thoroughly thought about, Dan’s brain moved on to Phil, the cute florist. There seemed to be a pretty steady loop of _‘he brought you flowers’_ going through his mind, and that was great and all, but there was also the fact that he was a florist. Of course he brought flowers. It would be like Dan doing a drawing and sending it over. That’s what he _did_. It didn’t make it any less special, but it also wasn’t really a surprise.

It took a minute before the idea entered his brain, but once it did, it felt kind of obvious. Dan _should_ do some kind of drawing for Phil. Just as a thank you. Nothing major or elaborate, just a quick line drawing on a sketchbook page. He thought for a minute about what it should be, but that idea came pretty quickly: the flowers Phil brought him that day. He’d have to remember to take a picture of them when he got to work the next morning, but he could draw the flowers and the vase and the black ribbon… and then, as quickly as the idea came, doubt followed. Would that be weird? Would Phil even remember which flowers he gave Dan? Dan could usually see a client – a frequent one, at least – and know which tattoo he’d done for them. But were flowers the same? He didn’t want to make things awkward.

Dan groaned and flipped over in bed. He just needed to take the picture and he could decide whether he should go through with it or not later. Dan laid there for a few minutes, staring at his ceiling, before reaching over and grabbing his phone. It was already 2:30 in the morning, which did not bode well for his plans to get up and out the door early. He contemplated getting up and doing something that might make him tired, like sketching or maybe cleaning a little bit, but he just put his phone down and rolled over instead. Doing those things rarely helped, but at least he felt like he was being productive. Still, he wanted actual sleep and definitely wouldn’t get it if he wasn’t in bed.

Evidently, it was the right choice, because the next thing he knew, there was sunlight coming in his window. Dan blinked a couple times before groaning and pulling a pillow over his face. He laid there for a couple minutes before sighing and sitting up. He didn’t mind going to work; it was getting out of bed that he wasn’t so fond of. He was awake now, though, and he knew he had things to get done before he went in. First up: coffee. Since he didn’t know where to get a cup on his way to the shop, he figured he’d need at least one cup before he left home, because he still wasn’t going to try to take one with him. Especially now with Phil working next door.

Dan shook his head at that. This was getting out of hand rapidly. He should not be making decisions based on the cute boy who worked next door.

With that, he got out of bed, laughing at himself a little bit because of course he was going to make decisions based on the cute boy who worked next door. There wasn’t much use pretending otherwise.

He had his coffee, a shower, got dressed, ate a quick breakfast, and then Dan was out the door. It didn’t take a long time to get to work – ten minutes, give or take, on the tube and then a couple block walk. When his shop came into view, he glanced over at the flower shop. It was already open – not that Dan was surprised; it was already almost ten – and Dan passed his own door in favor of continuing on to Phil’s. He hesitated just a second before pulling the door open. The bell jingled and there he was, standing behind the counter with several buckets of flowers piled around him. Phil looked up and Dan watched his expression change from what Dan guessed to be his normal, _greeting a customer_ smile to what he hoped was actual surprise or even delight (if he could be so bold). (He really needed to chill, but clearly his brain wasn’t getting that message.)

“Dan! Hello,” Phil said, waving with the hand holding a flower. Dan watched as the flower waved and grinned back.

“Hey Phil. I just wanted to see if you knew of a decent coffee shop around here,” he said, hopefully casually. Phil blinked, and Dan rushed on. “I used to walk past one, but I haven’t seen one on my way here, but I don’t really trust myself to take a coffee on the tube… so I’d like to get one at some point after that.” Dan paused, only for a second. “Do you drink coffee?”

The florist laughed. “I do drink coffee. There’s a place around the corner from here. I walk past it on my way in, but I’m guessing you come in from that way?” Phil pointed towards Dan’s shop and in the direction in which Dan had indeed come from. When he nodded, Phil continued. “Yeah, I don’t think there’s much that way in terms of coffee. I can show you the one closest, if you’d like.”

Dan felt his heart rate speed up.  “I… yeah, if it’s not too much trouble, that’d be great.”

Phil grinned and Dan felt like he was staring into the sun for a minute. “Absolutely. Do you want to go now?”

Dan blinked. “Well… don’t you have work to do?”

Phil shrugged. “I do, but I’m the boss. I can close for a few minutes to go get some coffee. Besides,” he said, moving towards the sink to (Dan presumed) wash his hands. “It’s been kind of a long morning already, so I could use a cup of coffee right about now.”

Dan grinned back, knowing that his smile didn’t do any justice to how he actually felt about the whole situation. “That sounds great, actually, thanks.”

Phil (who was indeed washing his hands) shrugged and glanced at Dan over his shoulder. “That’s alright. I’m kind of addicted to caffeine, so I hardly need an excuse to go.” He reached for a towel. “But it’s always nice to have one.”

Dan nodded as Phil bustled around the store, grabbing his wallet and keys before taking down his OPEN sign and replacing it with one that said BE BACK SOON. Dan hoped to himself that it wouldn’t be too soon, but instantly scolded himself for doing so. This was Phil’s job. Dan couldn’t hope to take him away from it for too long. Still, Dan found himself pleasantly surprised and very pleased when Phil looked at him and grinned.

“Ready?”

Dan nodded again. “Lead the way.”

That worked alright in theory, except Phil had to lock the door behind Dan, so they did a little bit of an awkward dance, in the way that people who didn’t know each other very well sometimes did. Once that was sorted out, Phil did kind of lead the way, but only for a moment or two before they ended up walking next to each other.

“So why did you decide to move your shop?” Phil asked him, after a couple minutes of silence.

Dan shrugged, prepared to brush it off. When he glanced at Phil, however, he saw what appeared to be a genuine look of interest on his face. Dan hesitated at that; he hadn’t really planned on airing his dirty laundry. Now he didn’t want to lie. “I…” he started, before blowing his cheeks out and pausing. “It’s kind of a long story,” he admitted finally. “But a couple months ago, the landlord told me that I either needed to sign a new lease or they were going to start showing the space… you know, with permission and trying to be as unobtrusive to business as possible… But still, showing it to potential occupants. And I didn’t want to sign the lease, but I didn’t have anywhere else planned yet. Louise – the girl you met yesterday, the one with pink hair,” Dan rambled on, suddenly aware that he was sounding a little ridiculous but unable to stop. “She’s the one who found this space. Even toured it before she even mentioned it to me.” He shook his head. “She’s a great friend to have. That’s like the fourth problem she’s gotten me out of before I realized I was actually in a mess.”

“She sounds lovely,” Phil said. Dan thought he heard something weird with Phil’s tone, but it wasn’t there in the next sentence, so he assumed he was probably imagining it. “I didn’t even know they were showing that space, to be honest. It’s been empty for several months. I kind of just assumed there was some kind of bad juju around it.” He shrugged. “Or that no one wanted to work next to a flower shop.”

Dan laughed. “Do you really think that would turn someone off of the place?”

Phil shrugged again, but Dan saw the corners of his mouth twitch up. “You never know. Some people really don’t like flowers. Or they have allergies. That’s an issue. I almost hired an employee once but ten minutes into the interview, she started sneezing so badly she ended up leaving without explaining – not that I needed an explanation; obviously I could tell what the issue was – and she called me the next day to say that she didn’t think she was the right fit for the job and thanked me for the interview anyway.” By this point, Dan was laughing even harder. He still managed to notice that Phil’s smile had grown, and truly wanted to do whatever it took to keep him smiling. “I didn’t really know what to say, so I told her I’d give her a good recommendation if she needed one. Hasn’t taken me up on that one, yet, but the offer’s still valid. She knew a lot about flowers for someone who was allergic…” Phil trailed off and then shrugged again. “Oh well. I don’t need an employee anyway.”

Dan slowly stopped laughing. “Wait,” he wheezed, trying to catch his breath. “You don’t have any employees?”

Phil shook his head. “Do you?”

“Oh, yeah,” Dan said, finally calm. “I’m not totally sure how many will stick with me through the move, but before I had two girls at the reception desk and two to four other artists and piercers who rotated around the schedule.” He shrugged. “It was really nice to not be the only one working. I couldn’t really stop in the middle of a session to answer the phone or make an appointment.”

Phil nodded. “That makes sense.”

Dan hesitated. “Do you… are you still looking for help?”

Phil bit his lip and was quiet for a moment. Dan wondered if it was a question he shouldn’t have asked, but Phil eventually responded. “I’m not, really,” he said slowly. “I probably should be, but I’m kind of nervous about the whole thing. It’s my reputation on the line. I’m not sure if I’m ready to trust anyone else with that.” He shrugged. “I know they’re just flowers, but it means a lot to me.”

Dan blinked. “No, no that makes sense, too. They’re not _just_ flowers,” Dan said, surprising himself at the certainty in his voice. “Your customers know they can trust you to get the arrangement right. They know what to expect. You shouldn’t feel like you have to let someone else in until you’re ready.” Phil glanced at him, and Dan caught himself holding his breath. Phil looked away after a moment and Dan slowly let air out.

“I really didn’t think we’d have this serious of a conversation on the way to the coffee shop,” Phil said finally, a smile ghosting on his face. “I’m not complaining,” he added, glancing at Dan again. “It’s just… well, yeah. Not what I expected.” He shrugged, and Dan let his words roll around in his head for a minute.

“I didn’t either, to be honest,” he agreed after a quite moment. “I just wanted coffee.” There was a pause, and Dan rushed to add, “But I’m also not complaining. It’s nice.”

Phil nodded. A moment later, he pointed. “That building over there? That’s where we’re going.”

It took Dan a second to catch up with the subject change, but when he did and followed Phil’s finger, he couldn’t help but grin. He’d been doing that a lot lately, smiling in Phil’s presence. That was a problem for another day, he decided.

The coffee shop was nestled in between a bookstore and a barber shop, which seemed weird to Dan but hey, he had a tattoo parlor next to a flower shop, so maybe he wasn’t one to talk. It had a couple tables out front, which seemed convenient for anyone waiting on someone in either the bookstore or the barber shop. Dan briefly wondered if he should get some tables for the front of his shop before remembering that he owned a _tattoo parlor_ and it probably wouldn’t match the décor. Or the clientele. Maybe he could convince Phil to get some tables. Not that it would fit any better with his clients… Dan shook his head and followed Phil across the street.

“So you pass by here every morning?” Dan asked, needing to fill the quiet.

Phil nodded. “Yeah, I have a pretty short commute. I choose to walk a little farther by stopping on this side of the shop instead of the other side, but I don’t mind because I always end up popping in here in the mornings. Hello, Karen!” Phil called, his voice getting louder at the end as they entered the coffee shop. The girl behind the counter – Karen, Dan presumed – smiled and waved at Phil. Dan felt his stomach flip over and suppressed an eye roll at his behavior. This was getting out of hand. Dan just needed coffee and more human interaction than he usually got, and he’d go back to normal soon.

“The usual for you?” Karen asked as they got closer to the register. Phil nodded, and the girl turned towards Dan. “And what’ll you have?” Dan swallowed hard, suddenly unprepared for the entire ordeal. Phil came to his rescue, possibly unknowingly, because he looked up at the menu that Dan was staring at.

“I get the caramel macchiato. It’s lovely, but some of my friends say it’s too sweet. I’ve also heard really good things about their hot chocolate, which isn’t exactly coffee… but they also have nice iced coffee. You can’t really go wrong here,” Phil said with a shrug.

Karen laughed. “You say that like you ever get anything but a caramel macchiato.” To Dan, she added, “he’s been coming in here regularly for at least a year, and he’s ordered something different exactly twice. Both times, he regretted it.” She ended with a mock glare at Phil, and a quick glance at the other man confirmed that he was blushing a little bit.

“I’m just happy with what I like!” Phil said, weakly trying to defend himself. Dan caught Karen’s eye and shook his head.

“I’ll have a caramel macchiato as well,” he said with a shrug. “And both are on me.” He handed over his card as Phil squawked. Dan glanced at him and grinned. “As a thank you for the flowers and for leading me to coffee.”

Phil squinted but eventually nodded. Dan considered that a win, though he had a feeling that it might not be the end of it. He didn’t mind; it just meant more chances to see Phil.

Also, he was getting ahead of himself again.

They stood by the counter while they waited for their drinks, and Dan wondered how to suggest that they stayed there to drink them – at least for a little while – instead of going straight back to work. He fretted about it for nearly the entire time it took to make their drinks, and when the barista handed them over, Dan still didn’t know what to say.

It turned out that he didn’t have to. “Do you mind staying here for a bit?” Phil asked, stirring his drink. “I’m not the best at walking and drinking anything hot.”

Dan let out a breath. “Yeah, that works for me. Do you have a particular spot you like or just anywhere?”

Phil blushed the tiniest bit and looked a little sheepish as he responded. “I… I usually sit by the window over there, if you don’t mind.”

Dan nodded. “After you,” he said gesturing gently with his coffee. Phil looked surprised for a second and then seemingly snapped out of it, because he grinned and started towards the table in question. Dan followed, taking the chair opposite Phil. He watched as the other man settled into his chair and took a sip of his coffee, only looking away when he realized that he was staring. He took a sip of his own coffee – which was still pretty hot, thank you very much – and glanced back at Phil. “So – not to sound strange or anything – but do you come here often?” He mentally cringed at how weird that still sounded, and rushed to continue. “I mean, just, the barista said you came here frequently but do you normally stay a while?”

Phil smiled at him over his coffee cup. Dan noticed how Phil was cradling it with both hands. It was adorable. “I usually stay for a few minutes, at the very least. Like I said, I’m not great at taking a full cup of coffee and walking down the street with it. I tend to just stay long enough to drink a bit of it so it doesn’t slosh out through the top, and then I drink the rest when I get to the shop.”

Dan nodded. “Well, I appreciate that. I’m not particularly excited about the idea of spilling coffee down my front.”

Phil tilted his head. “Is that – I mean, that makes sense, right, but is it just based on the principle of ruining clothes?”

Dan raised an eyebrow. “Well, it’s also hot…” He shrugged. “Or cold. I wouldn’t want either of them spilled on me.”

Phil blushed, deeper this time. Dan raised both eyebrows this time, wondering what on earth he said to make Phil blush. He got his answer pretty quickly. “I just, well, you must have a pretty high pain tolerance?” It came out like a question, and it took Dan a minute to work out where Phil was going with that. When he did, he laughed.  

“Right. Yeah, well, there’s something about choosing to stab a needle into your skin repeatedly for a considerable amount of time that just doesn’t compare to being suddenly drenched in scalding liquid. At least I have something to show for the former when it’s all said and done.”

Phil was still bright red as he glanced down at his coffee. “I’ve never gotten a tattoo before. I’ve just heard that they hurt a lot,” he mumbled.

Dan did his best not to laugh. There was something he liked about Phil thinking that he had a high enough pain tolerance where spilling hot coffee on himself would be a mere inconvenience. “It does, sometimes. It depends where you get it, and if the design is filled in, and also how sensitive you are.” Dan shrugged. “Mine still hurt, but it’s honestly kind of addicting.”

Phil’s head snapped up. “Addicting? Like you’re addicted to getting tattoos?”

Dan nodded, suddenly considering that maybe he should have omitted that particular tidbit of information. He had temporarily forgotten that he didn’t actually know Phil – and Phil didn’t know him – which meant that some of the things that he said could be taken the wrong way without the context of his personality and life experiences.

Phil’s blush was fading, but his look of concern wasn’t. “Is that… I mean, should you… um, is that bad?”

Dan laughed this time; he couldn’t help it. He grinned fondly at Phil. “No, it’s alright. Especially for me, since I own the shop.”

“Do you tattoo yourself?!” Phil seemed really alarmed now, but Dan was already shaking his head.

“Not usually. I hire qualified people, so I trust them to do my designs the way I’d do them. It works out nicely in that regard.” Phil nodded, looking slightly calmer than he had before. Dan took a sip of his coffee, which had already begun cooling to a drinkable temperature.

“Sorry,” Phil said suddenly, causing Dan to quickly meet his gaze. “That was a more personal conversation topic than I planned on following.”

Dan furrowed his brow and shrugged. “That’s alright. I’m kind of used to it by now, honestly. It’s part of the job.”

Phil made a noncommittal noise and took a sip of his own coffee. They sat in silence for a couple minutes. It wasn’t uncomfortable, per se, but Dan would rather have spent the time asking Phil why he owned a flower shop or how he made button ups look so good or what his natural hair color was.

Instead of any of those things, Dan sighed and played with the cardboard sleeve on his coffee cup. “Do you need to get back to work?” he asked. “Not that I want to head back, but your shop is open and mine isn’t yet.”

Dan hoped he didn’t imagine the fleeting look of disappointment on Phil’s face as he nodded and scooted his chair back. “I would prefer to just stay here, but I really should get back.” Dan stood up as well and they moved towards the door in silence. Just before he pushed the door open, Phil turned and waved to Karen, who waved back, and then they were outside, going back the way they had come. Dan paid close attention this time, because it would be a little embarrassing to have to admit that he couldn’t remember how to get to the coffee shop. Phil was telling him a story about a dog that had visited his shop earlier in the week, and Dan laughed at all the right places and generally enjoyed the handful of minutes where they seemed like real, actual friends, instead of just work neighbors. 


	3. Chapter 3

Dan’s first order of business after saying goodbye to Phil and getting into his own shop was to take a picture of the flowers from the day before. He knew that he needed to do it before anyone else got there, because he didn’t want to get busy and forget, and because he wanted them to still look really pretty for the picture. He set his coffee cup on the counter, far enough away to be out of the picture, and pulled out his phone. Just as he was turning around to check to see if anyone else was there, he realized that he was being ridiculous. He didn’t need to be embarrassed; taking pictures of flowers – especially ones that were a gift – was absolutely allowed. Besides, he had a purpose for the picture. Dan took seemingly random pictures all the time to use as reference later for a drawing.

Still, he didn’t want anyone to walk in and catch him doing it. He really didn’t want to explain why he wanted to remember these specific flowers.

Dan snapped a picture from several angles, taking extra care to make sure the photos themselves were aesthetically pleasing instead of just making sure they did the job of capturing the flower. Any time Dan drew something based directly on a real life thing, he liked having a very good picture to compare the finished product to. It was always interesting to see the comparisons, especially if he used multiple influences in one drawing.

Once he was done with the mini photo shoot, it was time to actually get the shop in order. The movers had done a good job of putting things where they were supposed to go, but Dan still had several boxes to unpack, and unpacking meant testing all of the equipment. He didn’t really understand how some electronic devices were so temperamental that being unplugged, driven across town, and plugged back in could make them stop working, but it was a thing that happened occasionally and he’d prefer to find out sooner rather than later. Especially since he was kind of going into the opening without knowing exactly how many people he’d have.

Dan knew that some people would find it odd, or think that he didn’t have proper control over his employees. Maybe it was; maybe he didn’t. Really though, it just wasn’t in his nature to deal with that. He liked the people that worked for him, but he didn’t want them to feel like they had to devote their lives to his shop. Every time he thought about his mindset on the whole thing, he wondered if it actually made sense. Most times, he concluded that it didn’t. He just knew that he had hated feeling like his boss was his enemy and that he couldn’t have priorities of his own.

It wasn’t like his employees just showed up at random. If they had an appointment, they better be there. If they wanted a regular paycheck, they were put on the schedule. On the flip side, if they wanted to only work three or four hours a day, they could do that. The girls did well with the scheduling, so Dan was really glad that at least one of them was making the decision to stay with him.

As he set up around the store, his mind wandered, eventually landing back on Phil. He wasn’t even surprised at this point, which made him a little uneasy – it had only been a day – but he brushed that aside. Dan found himself really wanting to know how Phil had gotten started with the flower shop. Had he always wanted to be a florist? Did he take over the business from someone? Was it a family store?

Dan shook his head. He figured that Phil could ask the same question of how he got started, though it was probably obvious that it wasn’t a family business. It also hadn’t been his life goal or anything. Truthfully, Dan hadn’t really known what he wanted to do with his life. He hadn’t even planned on getting his first tattoo when he did.

His thoughts were interrupted by his cell phone buzzing loudly. Dan glanced at the screen and sighed. It was his mum, which wasn’t a bad thing, but he wasn’t really sure what to say to her. The last time they’d talked, Dan had avoided mentioning that he was moving the shop. In fact, the last several times they’d talked, he had made sure to steer clear of all things business related. It wasn’t that she disapproved or that didn’t want to talk to her… technically. It really just came down to the fact that they had differing opinions on some things and it made the conversation much more pleasant if work never came up.

But… he had moved. Whatever the reason, it had happened. Dan wondered fleetingly if that might change things, make it easier to talk to his mum. Maybe he wouldn’t have to think so carefully every time he said something. He answered the call just before it went to voicemail.

“Hello.”

“Daniel! I didn’t expect you to answer. Is everything alright?” His mother really did sound surprised, but Dan didn’t think it was necessarily in a bad way.

“I’m good, Mum, actually. I’m just…” This was the moment. He could either tell her or gloss over it. Dan closed his eyes. “…setting up the shop.”

She caught it right away. “Setting up?”

“I moved. The shop, not my flat,” he added. “I decided not to renew the lease and Louise helped me find somewhere else to rent.”

His mum was quiet for several long moments and Dan’s tongue went to his piercing. Finally, it sounded like she let out a breath. “Well, that’s… good?”

It was a start. “Yeah, Mum. It’s nice. A little cheaper than the other place, closer to my flat, and I’ve already met one of the neighbors. He’s nice, been here for a while. He said it’s a good area to be in…” Dan trailed off.

“Is he in the same building as you?”

Dan shook his head. “No, they’re not connected here. There’s actually a tiny bit of grass in between our two buildings, like there was supposed to be something else there but it just didn’t happen or has gone already.”

“And what does this neighbor do?” There it was. This was her way of asking what kind of neighborhood he’d moved into without asking it outright. Dan felt himself grin.

“Ah, he owns a flower shop actually.”

“Oh!” Dan’s grin grew into a full smile at his mother’s surprise. “Oh, that’s… well, that’s not what I was expecting. It sounds lovely, though.”

“His shop is really nice. He knows his flowers, or he has me convinced.” Dan shrugged, even though she couldn’t see it. “He brought some over yesterday and they’re still alive. Or, I guess, not wilted. They still look nice.”

“That was very kind of him.”

“Yeah.”

After just a moment, his mum spoke up again. “So you’ve moved. When do you reopen?” Dan was oddly grateful that they had moved away from Phil before the conversation went too much deeper. He wasn’t quite ready to have that part of the conversation just yet.

“Tomorrow, actually. It seemed like a good idea when I planned it, but now I’m not positive that everything will be up and running,” he said, running a hand through his hair. “It’s not impossible, but there were a couple things I wanted to change up that might not get done today. It’s not that big of a deal, though.”

“Well, just because you’re open for business doesn’t mean you can’t close one day here or there for some updates. You’re the boss, darling. You can make those decisions.”

She was right, of course. Dan sometimes felt like he had to be open all the time, just in case someone wanted to come in. That feeling had gotten significantly easier to manage when he started closing at eleven, but it still lingered with some parts of the business. Taking an entire day and keeping the store closed? That made his skin crawl a little bit.

In the end, he told his mum he’d think about it. They chatted for another twenty minutes or so, about her job and the family, and ended with her promising to come to London eventually and see the new shop. When they hung up, Dan felt much better about the entire concept of talking to his mum.

 

By the time he left the shop, it was already dark. Dan glanced at the flower shop, expecting it to be closed but finding himself disappointed anyway. It was just as well, because he really needed to get home and actually get to sleep so he could run some errands in the morning before going to the shop. The grand opening wasn’t a huge deal; the regular customers knew about it, as did many of his newer clients who had seen the sign about moving the shop. He expected a decent number of people to filter through the shop during the course of the day, but he wasn’t throwing a huge party. Even so, he wanted to pick up some snacks and drinks. He had considered decorations but quickly nixed that idea. He was an artist, sure, but when it came to decorating, he preferred to not.

Louise, however, had other plans. Dan really shouldn’t have been surprised when she walked in about ten minutes after he did the next morning, arms full of bags and balloons. Dan blinked at her and took another sip of his coffee. Despite having already been awake for hours and also having successfully navigated a grocery store, Dan didn’t feel prepared to handle the tornado that was Louise when she wanted to do something.

It hadn’t been difficult, really, getting the things he wanted for the grand opening. It was just time consuming and involved several decisions that he really hadn’t been prepared to make. There were so many options when it came to a cheese plate, and a fruit plate, and drinks... and that’s not even getting into the other snack options he had. He was just glad that the grocery store was decently close to his shop, and also that there had been a coffee kiosk by the tube stop. Someone had planned that nicely.

Dan watched as Louise bustled about the shop, adding balloons and a table cloth and switched out his roll of paper towels for actual napkins. She finally shooed him away to go do something in his office – “surely there’s something you need to do that doesn’t involve standing there watching me!” – and he went, even though he didn’t actually do much. Normally, he would do bookkeeping or reorder supplies or make the next schedule… but all of those things were done already. He briefly contemplated getting started on his drawing for Phil, but abandoned that idea just as quickly as it came. He didn’t want Louise to see it and ask questions yet; he knew he couldn’t avoid that forever, but he’d rather that happen later than sooner. He remembered then that Phil had said he would come by at some point. He wasn’t quite sure how he’d managed to forget that part, but the knowledge didn’t do anything positive for his nerves. It really just added to the restlessness he felt, so about thirty minutes after he went into his office, he left.

“Lou, I know you wanted me out of the way, but I can’t just… woah. What… how?” Dan looked around. The entire entryway and general area of the shop was decorated with shiny black, white, and silver decorations. He honestly wasn’t sure how Louise had managed to do it all so quickly. It wasn’t tacky, either, and actually fit with his décor and aesthetic. Dan was still staring at the space when Louise stepped out of the section that he tattooed from, and he realized that she wasn’t actually done. “How in the world did you do this?”

She shrugged, but Dan saw the smile she tried to hide. “I’m good at this part. It’s quite fun, actually.”

Dan raised an eyebrow. “If you say so. Do you want me to do anything?”

Louise shook her head. “Not really. Do you not have anything to do?”

Dan ran a hand through his hair, something he’d done a lot lately. “I don’t, actually. I’m not expecting anyone for another hour or so and I don’t really want to start anything and have to finish and clean up in that time.”

Louise nodded at his chair. “Then sit down and tell me about that cute neighbor of yours.” When Dan spluttered, Louise laughed. “Oh come on, love. I’ve known you for long enough. You saw him yesterday, didn’t you?”

Dan pinched the bridge of his nose. She always knew these things and Dan honestly sometimes wondered if she bugged his phone or something. He’d learned a long time ago that it was pointless to hide anything from her, because she seemed to know everyone and it always got back to her. He didn’t even consider not telling her about Phil.

“I did. I went over and asked him where he got his coffee, hoping he would point me in the right direction. He ended up going over there with me and we talked for a bit.” Dan shrugged, trying to keep his emotions level.

Louise, on the other hand, did no such thing. “Oh!” she squealed. “Oh, that’s so lovely! Was that his suggestion or yours?”

“His,” Dan said simply, trying to keep himself from breaking out into a grin as big as hers.

Louise clapped her hands together. “And how was it?”

Dan nodded. “Good. We just talked, about work mostly, but it was still nice. He’s…” He trailed off, searching for the right word. “…quirky, but in an endearing way. And he doesn’t seem, I don’t know, intimidated by me or anything, so that’s kind of a relief.”

Louise nodded. “Fewer people would be intimidated by you if you’d actually talk to them,” she reminded him gently. Dan sighed. They’d had this conversation before, and while he had to conclude that she was probably right, it didn’t make it easy. Dan didn’t exactly look forward to talking to people. It was okay when he was doing a tattoo, but other than that, he’d much rather just keep to himself. “And quirky isn’t bad,” Louise continued, pulling Dan from his thoughts. “You’re a little quirky, too.” She winked at him and adjusted a balloon. “Invite me to the wedding.”

Dan choked on his own spit and started coughing as Louise laughed. When he finally calmed down, he glared at her. Truthfully, it was a testament to their friendship that she just laughed harder, and that he didn’t actually care. There was a time when her comment would have actually riled him up, but he’d grown up enough to know that there wasn’t any heat in her comments. (Unless there actually was a wedding. Then she fully expected to be invited.)

“I met the man two days ago, Lou! Give it some time,” Dan said, shaking his head. “Come on now. Don’t do that when he’s here. You’ll scare him off and I’ll have to work next door to him in a constant state of embarrassment.”

Louise chuckled and wiped her eyes. “Oh calm down, I’ll behave. Besides, he seems very _friendly_ , so I’m sure he wouldn’t mind a couple jokes.” She giggled again and shook her head. “But I won’t say anything like that this time. I promise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think! (: My birthday is Wednesday - I turn 25 (gasp shock horror what) - and we've already started putting balloons up everywhere. Whoop!


End file.
